In July 1958 President Eisenhower ordered 5,000 US Marines to Lebanon, at the request of that country’s president, to face a perceived threat by Muslim rebels and help end a short-lived civil war.
Eisenhower justified his decision to send troops to the region on the basis that it was the “birthplace of three great religions,” as well as having “two-thirds of the presently known oil deposits.”
The American intervention lasted for three months until President Camille Chamoun completed his term as president of Lebanon.
American and Lebanese government forces successfully occupied the Port of Beirut and Beirut International Airport. With the crisis over, the United States withdrew.
Source: Wikipedia
Maybe if I had listened to Walter Cronkite more and Alan Freed less, I might have remembered this.